Olson votes to establish a Select Committee to investigate the Benghazi terror attacks

Published 2:35 pm, Thursday, May 8, 2014

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Rep. Pete Olson (TX-22) today voted to establish a Select Committee to investigate the 2012 terror attacks on US citizens in Benghazi. The new committee will combine the current investigations being undertaken by five separate House committees. The Select Committee will also include staff, including seasoned lawyers and investigators, with expertise in these types of investigations. White House officials have not agreed to appear before standing committees; however, there is precedent for them to appear before a Select Committee.

“Today, I voted to bring justice to the families who lost loved ones in the terror attack in Benghazi on September 11, 2012," Olson said. "The failure of the Obama Administration to disclose what happened that fateful day is inexcusable. It’s time the American people get answers about the Administration’s role in the Benghazi terrorist attack. The families of US Ambassador Chris Stevens, Glen Doherty, Tyrone Woods and Sean Smith deserve the truth.”

Congress has been demanding answers from the White House since the terrorist attack left four Americans dead in Libya on September 11, 2012. Since the attack, the White House has never fully disclosed the events that took place that day. Recently, a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit brought forth a September 14th email from the White House revealing talking points from the administration to then U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice before she appeared on the Sunday morning news programs. This “prep call” encouraged Rice to make controversial and flawed statements linking the Benghazi attack to an anti-Islam Internet video. The Select Committee on Benghazi will take necessary action to get the truth for the families who lost loved ones and the American people who deserve to know the truth about what happened that tragic day.